There will be plenty of side drama to tonight's game, with everyone wondering whether there will be any recourse for the Nationals ratting out Rays reliever Joel Peralta's pine tar-laden glove, not to mention Joe Maddon's less-than-complimentary feelings about Davey Johnson.

But of far more importance to the Nationals is the need for a win. They've lost four straight, and the last thing they want to do is extend the streak to five. Fortunately, Stephen Strasburg is on the mound tonight. The Nats have given their ace the ball three times this season while they're stuck in a losing streak of at least three games. Strasburg has won all three games: May 10 at the Pirates, May 20 against the Orioles, June 2 against the Braves.

Strasburg was supposed to be opposed tonight by Jeremy Hellickson, but the budding Rays right-hander was placed on the DL with a shoulder injury. So instead it'll be righty Chris Archer making his big-league debut.

So nice to have a true stopper in the rotation. Strasburg has been as good as advertised, and more. Can you imagine coming up for your major league debut and finding out that the opposing pitcher is none other than a candidate for best in the game?

Thinking about the Wang debates on the last couple of threads, if and when a decision was made to cut our losses there, I suspect that Rizzo would want to trade him for whatever he could get (maybe as part of a package), because if you DFA him you pay his full salary but you can't do anything to control where he goes. That could be the worst of both worlds — if he goes to another NL team and starts to do OK (you don't have to be Justin Verlander to plow through our lineup), we could be paying another team for him to knock us out of contention.So regardless of what we may or may not be able to get for him, I would think a trade before DFA.

I fear that JD is right. No one will give us anything for him. However, if someone picks him up off waivers they have to assume his salary, right? So if another team is interested, maybe a deal can be made where we get a low level prospect in exchange for picking up part of the remaining salary.

Hey all, two quick questions:1. When "the glove incident" occured, I was in the care listening to Charlie and Dave. As Peralta was talking off the mound, they said he tipped his cap to the Nats dugout. Anybody catch that? If so, was it a tip like "oh well, you guys got me" or was it a "you guys are jerks for betraying confidences" kind of a tip?2. I also missed, completely, this batters eye incident I've seen mentioned. Can somebody fill me in on that one?Thanks all!GYFNG!

The best outcome for the Wang situation is that he remembers how to pitch. JD is right; no one else wants him — right now. Eventually, however, someone will; I note that the Mariners have called up Oliver Perez.According to reports, all of Wang's problems revolve around "mechanics." It amazes me how players who've been in the league for years, have been successful, and are getting paid $MM to play can "forget" their mechanics. There have to be tera-gigabytes of Wang available for him to watch on his iPhone and remind him what he needs to do to be successful. It makes me pretty unsympathetic when players say they just need to figure out how to get their groove back.

Mark says,So instead it'll be righty Chris Archer making his big-league debut. Smurff says,Chris Archer is 4-8 in 14 games this year at Durham. 76 innings, 90 SO, 45 walks. 4.81 ERA, 1.43 WHIP.Of course, this means that the Nats will have zero base runners thru 4, possibly 5 innings. Then they'll scratch a hit or two around a couple of walks, and thru 6 it'll be knotted up at 1 each. Man, I hope I am SO wrong on this …

what sec 222 said.not only will the cubs get much better offers, why would they be interested in wang at all? it's not like he's young or anything. wang has very little trade value unless and until he starts pitching well. and at that point, he'd likely have more value to the nats than he would return in a trade.

theophilus, if it was that easy to "get your groove back," then everyone would be great. it's hard enough to get that groove the first time. you make it sound like wang is just being lazy and should try harder.

Of course no one would pick up Wang's salary now. I think if absolutely necessary Rizzo would be more prepared to eat that as a bet he made that didn't pan out than with Lannan, where his $5 million in our arbitration "victory" was mostly an unavoidable payment for past services rendered more than anything else.And as for the "no one would take him off our hands at any price" — are you kidding? When Marquis was picked up by the Pads after torching his spot in the Twins' rotation? Sorry, that's letting your entirely understandable frustration with his pitch-to-pitch inconsistency blind you to what some teams will see, which is the fact that he can still locate and throw good pitches, even if he can't consistently do it from one pitch to the next. There will be teams out of contention already that look at what he did last September — which wasn't great but it was better than what many teams have at the bottom of their rotations — and say, "he's still physically capable of bringing it, so if it's at low cost, we're happy to take on the experiment of fixing him." Who knows what we'd get for that — non-contending teams are not going to give up quality prospects for that kind of gamble — but if you add Bernadina and a middling but blocked prospect of ours, we could get something decent back.

I also heard Charlie and Dave sayd the tip of the hat thing, but I didn't see it.The batters eye was a few innings earlier. The Nationals have some ad in the OF that "flips" to an ad between innings, but as the inning starts it goes back to solid. Some how it got stuck and the Nationals needed to send a mantanice worker out there and he put a tarp over it (Once he couldn't get it to flip back). Clear as mud?

Wonk, you can see the hat tip at about 2:35 of this clip. From the opposite angle on the replay last night it was clear he said something too, but he didn't look that pissed. So hard to interpet I think. Maybe something like, "thanks alot, you #$%holes." But you be the judge.As for the batters eye, the normal green background above the triangle of turf in CF becomes a red and white ad for tickets in between innings. Basically a series of panels rotates to be green during play and the ad during breaks. For some reason it didn't switch back, and the Rays complained, justifiably in my view. Apparently, they have a plan B in place for just such a mechanical snafu because a Nats employee made his way across the wall and lowered a green drape over the ad. Problem solved and play continued. I've seen comments today that the snafu occurred well before the complaint, and although I doubt that was the case, I can't say that from personal knowledge. I just didn't notice it from section 314.

Re: placing Wang on waivers.I think at this stage of the season, all waivers are irrevocable, so the Nats can't put him out there to see if a team would be interested in giving something up other $20,000. Only after the expiration of the trade deadline can waivers be "trade waivers" that allow you to pull the player back.Not to say Rizzo can't work the phones.See: http://www.baseball-reference.com/bullpen/Waivers#Trade_Waivers

Wonk, the Peralta hat tip was mentioned on the tv broadcast, but I missed it. However, I thought I saw Maddon tip (i.e., briefly touch the tip of) his cap to Johnson after the Mattheus glove- and hat-check.The other issue was a red and white advertising sign that was supposed to rotate to a plain green background before play resumed, but it did not. The Rays commented on it, and a Nats employee then lowered a green tarp over it (which must be the backup plan in case of malfunction).On a game note: Maybe the hot temps will help the Nats bats to heat up, and Strasburg's heat will make the Rays bats go cold. Ummm…to clarify: that would be the throwing kind of heat, not the ointment kind of heat. We don't want any issues out there.

Steady, The difference is Marquis was picked up off waivers. Sure someone will pick up CMW if we release him but they won't give you anything decent back. I can easily see Bernadina succeeding elsewhere if given an opportunity to play every day in a no pressure environment; he will never be a start but he may be a decent every day player.

erock33 – I was preparing a response to smurff pretty much exactly along the lines you put together. It is incredibly frustrating how excited we get to be sending a concensus top 10 pitcher in baseball in the faint hope that he can hold the opposing lineup to two runs or less, while the other teams seem to consistently achieve the same result against our hitters simply by trotting out the latest warm body …

To clarify the Joel "Sticky Fingers" Peralta situation, he was not re-signed by the Nats after the 2010 season, despite pitching well, because he wanted a two year contract and the Nationals were only interested in a one year contract.

Steve, That's a good move short term. Wang will either regain his effectiveness or set off into the sunset; my issue is as follows: who is the 5th starter in August? and that's assuming Det does well in his starts.

I'm a little surprised to see Mark's tweet–Det to start Sunday, Wang to BP, but there you go.I'll be interested to see Mark's full report: whether Davey posed this as a permanent change, a one-shot thing for Sunday, or a "we're taking it one start at a time" deal.

I love Davey!Mark Zuckerman‏@MarkZuckermanDavey on Maddon: " I don't know him that well, but I thought he was a weird wuss anyways."Marc Topkin‏@TBTimes_Rays#Nats Johnson calls Maddon's comments "interesting reading" + he didn't want to get into "shouting match" w/him cuz Maddon has "a tweeter"

hiramhover,If this was last year it would make sense to exhaust all efforts in an attempt to discover the old CMW. If we aspire to contend this year we can't keep giving away games; quite clearly Det > CMW so that's how it must be played.

Beachy to have Tommy John surgery Thursday.The Braves clobbered the Yanks. Hughes gave up 6 earned in 4 1/2 innings, including 4 homeruns.His ERA is now 4.94. Guess he needs to go to the bullpen…Oh, wait–Nats couldn't do anything with him. The ONLY game he didn't give up a HR was in Washington.

'm a little surprised to see Mark's tweet–Det to start Sunday, Wang to BP, but there you go.Rizzo just about said that this morning. Said they would do whatever they needed to get Wang to get where he needs to be, including putting him in the bullpen.

NatsLadyYeah, as I say, I'm a little surprised but not floored. I'm more curious about what they see as the path forward–for the long term, the BP doesn't seem a viable option for CMW. If they can get a few good BP appearances out of him–and that's a big if–I wonder if it would be a prelude to returning him to the rotation, or trading him.

Gotta be more to it than that. He only got a one-year with his next team. Another article I read said the Nats non-tendered him to avoid paying him arbitration. Also, if you have MLB.tv, take a look at the interaction between Davey and Storen in the dugout… It's almost like Storen is giving Davey a nod of approval–and wasn't Storen here in the summer of 2010…debut May 2010, a month before Peralta came up?

Does anyone think the Yankees are upset Melky Cabrera is lighting it up in San Francisco?I also agree with those that don't think you want to worry about Wang or HenRod being a star somewhere else. Doubtful it will happen.

I don't have as much faith in Detwiler as you all seem to have. He hasn't shown he can go three (or even two) times through the line-up on a regular basis. I feel at this point he is a lefty Stammen–and that's very useful, don't get me wrong. If Davey and Cat can't fix Wang by the trade deadline they will have to go outside.

Manassas Nats' Fan said… Hughes looked like Cy Young against us, and wworse than Wang against the Braves. Just goes to show you how poor in general our hitting has been.Lets get ready to win the next 5 games 1 at a time. June 20, 2012 5:13 PM _________________________________Hughes threw 75 pitches in the 4th inning. Sure, the Braves hit 4 bombs off of Hughes. Until Zim starts going in the 3 hole, its going to be a while before we see a 10 run game.

I'm certainly rooting for both Detwiler AND Wang. I think they are making the right move in sending Wang to the pen and letting Detwiler start again. However, my concern is Detwiler killing our bullpen. In his nine starts earlier this season, he averaged 5 1/3 IP per start. He had four starts of just five innings, two of six, one 6 1/3 and one 4 1/3. This is not what you want out of a starter, especially since he'll be pitching in front of Strasburg, who is on an innings limit, so is more likely to come out after six just to keep him in the rotation as long as we can. True, Detwiler has been outstanding out of the pen….but that's in two inning bits. Last night's 3 2/3 was the most he's pitched since he went to the pen. I hope McCatty can figure out how to get him over the hump and pitching into the 7th on a consistent basis, otherwise he's not going to be doing us much better.

According to reports, all of Wang's problems revolve around "mechanics." It amazes me how players who've been in the league for years, have been successful, and are getting paid $MM to play can "forget" their mechanics.Pitching mechanics aren't like riding a bike. You can't get hurt, miss a couple of years and then just pick back up like nothing happened. Especially when you were pitching at the highest possible level before your long layoff. It's like for instance a world-class violinist like Joshua Bell suffering a shoulder injury and having to not play at all for several years. Sure, once he comes back he'll probably be able to scratch out a tune before long, but it's going to take a long, long time until he gets back to where he was. And he doesn't even have to deal with a batter trying to take a knock out of every note he plays.

Ron in Reston, seems like you can look at it hoping optimisticly or pessimisticly that Detwiler will pitch better and longer into the games than Wang.Some like neither as the #5. I prefer a trade as Strasburg is projected to hit 165 innings the first week of September.Eventually it will be Gio, JZim, EJax, #4, #5 and that is a reality that Rizzo has to deal with.

Maddon, from his association with Scosia and Brendan Donelly and the set-to with Frank, must be something of an expert on pine tar.I love this war of words between Davey and Maddon. I think that we should call it the Wuss War.Maybe get Desi to let the air out of the tires of the Rays' airport bus.Hey guys, let's win biiiiiiig to-night!!!!GoooooooooooooooooNats!

pRAAI agree about the mechanics in general, but remember, CMW did pitch ok–well enough for a #5 starter, certainly–in 11 starts last year. So we're not talking about someone who hasn't done this in ages.

NatsLady, I am far from convinced that Det is the answer. He is just less likely to blow up than CMW at this time. He has a decent ERA but his peripherals are very so so (low BABIP – implies he's been lucky, 6 to 3 K to BB ratio WHIP is 1.21). I would contact the Cubs now about Dempster; Epstein may want to squeeze more by waiting until 7/31 but it's worth a try. I would dangle an interesting but iffy prospect like Eury Perez along with Bernadina but withdraw such an offer if they don't pull the trigger by 7/1.

My two cents (and overvalued at that!) on Wang: Formerly very good pitcher working his way back, and could regain his old form. However, I do not want a pitcher that makes me cringe whenever he runs to cover first, or has to run the bases. Would rather develop other talent.

Joe Maddon talking. "If I'm a major league player who might want to play for the Nationals I might think twice". Yeah, good luck with that Joe. The chance to play on a dynasty with Strasburg, Gio, Zim, and Harper is far outweighed by some bizarre old school notion of when it's ok to call out a cheater on the other team. Right.If Drew is the guy who ratted out Joel, good for him. I'll bet he doesn't employ foreign substances to make himself better.

Play in a dome in Tampa that can't sell out or attract a crowd of any size? Have zero payroll? Or as 222 says.. Play with Stras, Gio, Zim's, and Harper.And what the HECK! Peralta? He is out there HUGGING ALL THE NATS PLAYERS ON MLB NETWORK!!!

Okay.. Blow by Blow on MLB Network.Maddon has annoyed Bowa and Mitch Williams. AND THEY are going to town on MADDON! Mitch doesn't want to play for Maddon because of the costumes. And Bowa is calling him out for Maddon just saying "I am sticking up for my guy". Bowa – every manager does that!This is just CLASSIC! (Oh and Kruk last night was totally okay with Davey doing this and was ticked at Maddon for going after Mattheus)

From Twitter:David Huzzard ‏@DavidHuzzardSo if Nats offer Bourn more money & enough years to take him to the end of his career he may not come because Davey checked Peralta's glove?thom loverro ‏@thomloverroAnd if #Rays owners could, they would move the franchise to Rockville to get out of Tampa #Nationals @ESPNRadio980ETC… Some funny stuff, definitely not running in Maddon's favor.

Too bad on Tulo. I liked him, especially when he took Clip to the All-Star game in his private jet, I thought that was classy.From ESPN:PHILADELPHIA — Colorado Rockies shortstop Troy Tulowitzki will have surgery on his left groin area on Thursday and it's unknown when he'll return.Tulowitzki was injured May 30 against Houston, pulling up after running out an infield grounder. The All-Star shortstop took himself out of a game last Wednesday at Triple-A Colorado Springs after feeling not quite right.Rockies manager Jim Tracy says a timetable for Tulowitzki's return won't be known until he has the surgery. The operation will be performed by Dr. William Meyers in Philadelphia.Tulowitzki has won the Gold Glove, Silver Slugger Award and gone to the All-Star game each of the last two years. He was batting .287 with eight homers and 27 RBIs.

Am I the only guy who expects Joe "Idiot" Maddon to pull some funny business tonight? He's got this kid rookie pitcher who would do anything he's told. If Maddon tells the kid to whiz one by Lombo's back, he'll have to do it.Personally, I wouldn't get into a beanball war with Jesus on the mound. But I'm not Maddon. Like Davey says, he's a "weird wuss."

@MicheleS: I agree on the Goon Squad as backup. they've got to. But I expect some early wildness from this kid Archer.I also agree on the chocolate chip cookies for Det. Might get his height/weight up to 6-5, 195! Right now he's got the Body Mass Index of a spider!When are going to a game? How about Tuesday night July 3, a 6:30 start?

Sunshine_Bobby_Carpenter_Is_Too_Pessimistic_For_Me said…Am I the only guy who expects Joe "Idiot" Maddon to pull some funny business tonight?Carp just said the umps aren't going to put up with any crazy stuff tonight. Won't check anyone unless they themselves see something suspicious.

Umm . . . slight difference in pitching quality in the first inning between tonight and last night?Tonight: four batters up, one person hits it fair. To shortstop. Two K's and one BB.That's our stopper!Go Stras!GYFNG!

Looks like Idiot Maddon's kid pitcher needs a boatload of pine tar, vaseline, several razors and a big Gaylord Perry hocker to get through this inning.Archer is considered by many to be a pretty decent starting pitching prospect.Speaking of which, I'll be interested to see how Perry does in Harrisburg as a starter. He seemed better suited to that role in ST.

@MicheleS: Blow off Wolf Trap! C'mon out to the game!Seriously, we'll do it another time. I get my night job schedule three weeks ahead, so we'll pick a date. Saturdays and Sundays don't work too well for me, but weeknights would.

Weirdest summer promotion ticket promotion:The Mets tied the ticket price for some top seats this weekend against the New York Yankees to the gametime temperature Wednesday night.With heat advisories posted in the city, it was 94 degrees when the Mets started against Baltimore, and that meant a nice savings for fans.It will now be $94 for left-field reserved seats at Citi Field on Friday night, down from the usual $115. It also will be $94 for field boxes Sunday night, cut from the regular $136. I hope the Lerners don't hear about this. They'll be doing the same for those "capitol view" $5 gems.

Let see Zim hits into another double pla. Come on this is getting old. LaRoche takes a thrid strike again. that is getting old. Zim would have hit inot a double play i the first had Harper been on first. We are playing only 7 hitters tonight?

zim needs to trade places with Ian. Zim is hitting the ball on the ground right at the shortstop lately a lot. Tiill he gets hot move him to 6th. He is getting a nickname of double play machine on twitter.

Ghost ……and as far as Stras is concerned, he faced about the worst hitting team in the AL.Apparently, hiiting is awful in the entire state of Florida. The Fish are mow only out hitting the Bucco's and the Padres.

Burnett should be getting serious consideration for the All-Star team. He has been so tough all year now. Not sure if Chapman may hurt his chances as a LH specialist type, but if the NL picks 2 LH relievers, I would think he has a good shot.

Guys, I agree Zim is in a bad slump. And Mickey Morse is off to a slow start. But there is absolutely nothing wrong with Jesus. He gave up a solo homer, which is often does. And they scratch another run off him. And that's it for seven innings. Against a good (albeit light-hitting) club. That's a quality start in anybody's book. He's totally kept us in this game. Lay off Jesus.

Allright you Negative Nellies, I want ALL of YOU to take a big sip of Koolaid and think HAPPY Thoughts. Clipp is coming in and he will get a Save. And if you don't do that, I will let NatsLady take you out the wood shed for doubting Clipp.

NJ, I always respect your opinion and you're probably right. But that even shows Jesus's progress even more strikingly. He's going seven quality innings with just so-so command. Like you say, when he has that total command, he's unhittable. But I almost think winning (or going a strong seven) with less-than-your-best stuff is even more impressive. Just my two cents.

Were we lucky against the Yanks Saturday when Tyler Moore was safe at home to everyone but the umpire?I'm fed up to here (hand on same plane as eyeballs) at hearing how "aggressive" we are at the plate. Hey, I can be aggressive at the plate, too. I wouldn't hit squadoosh, but who cares as long as I'm aggressive? When I hear Carp and FP speak admiringly how Harper makes adjustments, knows what he's looking for at the plate, works the pitcher, it boggles my mind how they can then get so jazzed that the rest of the lineup is "aggressive" and "going up there hacking." How about going up there with a clue?